1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to registering a call in an elevator car, and in particular to an improved elevator car call register apparatus and a method thereof, capable of registering a call with respect to the whole floors in a building where an elevator provides service by using less call buttons.
2. Description of the Conventional Art
FIG. 1 is a diagram roughly illustrating a control panel of a conventional elevator car. As shown therein, a closing button 2 and an opening button 3 are positioned at a lower part of a control panel 1, and a plurality of call buttons BT1-BT60 which equal to the number of floors where the elevator provides service are sequentially located at an upper part of the panel 1, wherein each number marked on each of call buttons BT1-BT60 indicates each floor. In this specification, suppose that there are 60 floors that the elevator provides service, and thus the number of call buttons is 60.
FIGS. 2A and 2B are circuit diagrams illustrating a state that a car call is registered in the conventional elevator car, of which FIG. 2A is an input circuit diagram, and FIG. 2B is a car call register indicating circuit diagram.
As shown in FIG. 2A, an input circuit includes a plurality of input buffers IB1-IB60, which equal to the number of the floors, that is 60, are connected in parallel between a first power source line P24B and a communication line NOC, and the plurality of call buttons BT1-BT60 are respectively connected between a second power source line GD22A and each of the input buffers IB1-IB60. Here, the first power source line P24B receives a first power source, the second power source line GD22A receives a second power source, and the communication line NOC is connected with a car controller (not shown).
As shown in FIG. 2B, a car call register indicating circuit includes a plurality of lamps LED1-LED60 and a plurality of output buffers OBUF1-OBUF60, equivalent to the number of floors and are connected in series between a third power source line A24 and a signal line B24. The third power source line A24 receives a third power source, and the signal line B24 is connected with the car controller.
The operation of the thusly described circuit will be described with reference to accompanying drawings.
First, when a passenger presses a call button, on which a number corresponding to a destination floor where he/she wants to reach is marked, among the 60 call buttons BT1-BT60 installed in the control panel 1, the second power source line GD22A supplies power to a corresponding input buffer among the input buffers IB1-IB60, and accordingly the corresponding input buffer is enabled and outputs a call signal, and the thusly outputted call signal is transmitted to the car controller.
Accordingly, the car controller controls the elevator car to move to the desired floor and outputs an enable signal to the signal line B24, a corresponding one of the output buffers OBUF1-OBUF60 is enabled by the enable signal, whereby the third power source is supplied to a corresponding lamp of the lamps LED1-LED60, connected with the output buffers OBUF1-OBUF60, through the third power source line A24, and accordingly the corresponding lamp is turned on.
Since each of the lamps LED1-LED60 is installed inside the corresponding call button of a transparent material, the passenger may notice whether the call of the desired floor is registered.
If a passenger boarding on a first floor presses a call button BT27 to reach a 27th floor, a call signal is outputted from an input buffer IB27, the car controller outputs a corresponding enable input signal, and an output buffer OBUF27 is set by the enable signal, and a lamp LED27 corresponding to the 27th floor is turned on. Accordingly, the passenger may know that the call for the 27th floor is registered.
However, in the conventional art, the number of call buttons are identical to the number of the floors that the elevator car provides service. Therefore, when it is a building of 60 floors, 60 call buttons should be installed in the control panel 1. So, the higher the building is, the more call buttons should be installed in the control panel. Accordingly, the constructions of the circuit for processing a call for each floor, and the control panel become more complicated, and consequently the manufacturing cost is increased.
In addition, once a call for a desired floor is registered by a passenger, it is impossible to cancel the call registration though it is the wrong call, so that the elevator car provides service to an undesired floor. Accordingly, power is unnecessarily consumed, and also the passenger may be displeased at delay of service.